Finally making his UFC main card debut, all eyes were on the highly touted, up-and-coming middleweight Francis Carmont, and he didn’t disappoint.

Carmont looked good on the feet, got out of a few sticky situations on the mat and then finished with a submission of his own taking out Karlos Vemola in the second round.

What We’ll Remember About This Fight

Take your pick. The sweet front kick to the jaw of Vemola or the fantastic crucifix into a rear naked choke transition to win the fight.

Carmont showed off a ton of technical skill, and is quickly becoming a fighter to watch in the suddenly deep middleweight pool.

What We Learned About Vemola

Vemola has some serious strength and looked impressive in spurts during this fight, but he still needs to polish up his game if he wants to make some noise in the UFC.

Other than a few guillotine attempts, that he only grabbed onto because he was being taken down, Vemola didn’t create much offense in this one, and he had even more trouble stopping the onslaught that Carmont brought to the table.

What We Learned About Carmont

He hasn’t proved that he’s a future contender yet, but Carmont has looked better and better against improving competition in all three of his octagon bouts.

There’s been a few instances in the cage where he has gotten himself into trouble by diving into takedown attempts recklessly, but his submission defense has been very good so far in his UFC career.

Carmont has a ton of potential, and we could see him fighting a top competitor at 185 in his next fight.

What’s Next for Vemola

Vemola has a 2-3 record inside the octagon, and while he hasn’t lost two straight fights he could easily be let go after such an uninspiring performance.

I think the UFC will probably give him another shot, however, and a fight against Nick Catone would be a tough fight for Vemola with his back firmly set against the wall.

What’s Next for Carmont

It’s time for Carmont to take a step up in competition, but I have a feeling the UFC is going to continue to build him up slowly.

A fight against TUF veteran CB Dollaway would be a solid test for the Tristar based fighter, and a win there would give him a solid name on his resume.